School district announces official state-provided grades

For a 16th consecutive year, Sarasota County Schools had been graded an A district by the state of Florida.

According to the Florida Department of Education’s 2019 accountability report, Sarasota County Schools has earned an additional eight points from the state since 2018, which brings the district total to 742 points.

In total, 34 Sarasota County schools received an A grade, 10 schools received a B grade, and four schools earned a C grade.

Emma E. Booker was the only district school to receive a D. No Sarasota County schools were graded as an F school.

Nine district schools, such as Sarasota High School and Gocio Elementary School, have also raised their overall grade by at least one letter since last year.

“I am so excited that Sarasota County Schools continues to be a high-performing school district,” said Superintendent Todd Bowden. “We placed a huge emphasis on reading and literacy last year, and because of the outstanding work of our incredible teachers, school leaders and curriculum specialists, this strategy has really paid off, especially for our lowest-performing students. There is a lot of room to improve, however, and I am hopeful that we will continue to increase in key areas by providing even more support to those schools and students needing greater opportunities to succeed.”